Christian Atsu Twasam, the Ghanaian international footballer who died in the Turkiye earthquake will be given a state assisted funeral, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated.
Everything will be done on the part of government to make sure that Christian Atsu Twasam, who President Akufo-Addo referred to as “an exceptional athlete, a brilliant man and a gift to our nation” was given a dignified exit.
President Akufo-Addo made the announcement when the Minister of Youth and Sports and the leadership of the Ghana Football Association and family of the late Atsu called on him to officially inform him about the death of the Ghanaian international at the Jubilee House in Accra today.
Duty
President Akufo-Addo said it was his duty and responsibility to make sure a befitting burial was organised and suggested that the sooner they did it the better for all but the decision rest with the family.
He said they should ensure that he was around to represent Ghanaians at the funeral, ”I will feel very bad if for some reason or another a date was chosen where I have obligations outside this country which I cannot over and therefore will not be present.”
He had asked the Chief of Staff, to ensure that they organised a state assisted funeral for Atsu depending on the date the members of the family and the GFA would arrive on adding that “everything will be done on the part of government to make sure that he is given a dignified exit.
Atsu’s Fanatic
President Akufo-Addo noted that just like many football fanatics, he spent a lot of time admiring Atsu and his exploits on the field.
He noted that the news surrounding his death in Turkiye was a tortuous experience for a lot of Ghanaians because initially they were made to understand he was alright and then came the news that that he had died.
He described his demise as a tragedy for family, his community and tragedy for the country and expressed the deep condolences and sympathies of the entire nation to the football fraternity and his family.
Salute
He commended Ghana’s Ambassadors to Turkiye, Francisca Ashietey-Odunton, for her efforts in locating and repatriating the remains to Ghana.
President Akufo-Addo disclosed that he spoke to his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and commended the country for their assistance in locating and facilitating the process of bringing the body to Ghana.
He said it was appropriate that Ghanaian expressed their appreciation for the work Atsu did for the nation and the contribution for the development of the game of football and sports in general.